Wang survives Gauzy scare to advance at table tennis worlds

China's world No. 2 Wang Chuqin survived a massive scare against France's Simon Gauzy on Thursday to go through to the men's singles quarterfinals at the World Table Tennis Championships.

Wang Chuqin serves during the men's singles round of 16 match between Wang Chuqin of China and Simon Gauzy of France at ITTF World Table Tennis Championships Finals Doha 2025 in Doha, Qatar, May 22, 2025. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

Jolted awake while two sets down, Wang played a very aggressive game with subtle maneuvers on the table and clinched the match over 51 minutes, in a score of 9-11, 9-11, 11-2, 11-9, 11-4, 11-8.

"I suddenly felt this could be my last game if I didn't turn the tables," said Wang. "I calmed myself down, not thinking about winning or losing. I just focused on tactics and skills."

The turning point came when the Chinese let out a loud shout while leading 5-2 in the third set. "I let off steam with that," he said.

Gauzy, ranked 43rd in the world, rated his performance nine out of 10.

"Wang was not at his best at the beginning, while I was," said the 30-year-old. "It's hard to handle his power and speed."

Wang will now face against the winner between eighth seed Patrick Franziska of Germany and 13th seed Lin Yun-Ju of Chinese Taipei.